Citi Double Cash Now Allows Conversions to ThankYou Points

UPDATE Jan. 20, 2022: Starting March 28, 2022, all rewards earned on the Citi Double Cash® Card will come in the form of Citi ThankYou points. However, that will not affect cardholders' ability to redeem rewards for cash back. The card will earn 1 point per dollar spent and 1 point per dollar paid off. Points are worth 1 cent apiece when redeemed for cash back, so you will still be able to earn 2% cash back with the card. Learn more about this change.

The article below describes an earlier initiative by Citi to allow Double Cash cardholders to convert their cash-back rewards to ThankYou points.

UPDATE Sept. 23, 2019: Holders of the Citi Double Cash® Card now have access to this rewards conversion feature. Below is our article from July 8, 2019, on the announcement of the feature, updated to reflect details including the transfer ratio.

The popular Citi Double Cash® Card, an excellent cash-back credit card, now allows cardholders to transfer those rewards to Citi’s ThankYou points program, effectively at a 1:1 ratio.

Messages about the feature began appearing in customer accounts in July 2019. Key missing information then was the transfer ratio, meaning what the cash-back rewards are worth after you convert them into ThankYou points. Citi now notes that "you'll receive 100 points for every $1 you convert."

You must have at least $1 in cash back rewards to transfer, but there's no maximum limit. Conversions from cash back to points are non-reversible.

And if you didn't already have a ThankYou points account? No worries. Citi has already set up one for you and linked it to your Citi Double Cash® Card. (If you're not interested in having such an account, you can call Citi and ask for it to be closed.)

» MORE: Citi ThankYou points: How to earn and use them

Is converting to ThankYou points a good deal?

It certainly could be. NerdWallet values ThankYou points at an average of 1 cent each, depending on what you redeem them for. Redemption options include travel, gift cards and more. But cash is a more flexible currency than any reward points, including ThankYou points, because you can spend it on anything — so a key to converting this card's cash rewards into ThankYou points would be to get back more than the cash value.

The $0-annual-fee Citi Double Cash® Card has the potential to provide that outsize value, given the 1:1 transfer ratio. That means you essentially earn 2 ThankYou points per dollar spent — just as the card now earns 2% cash back per dollar spent: 1% when you make a purchase, and another 1% back when you pay it off.

Depending on which other Citi cards you have and where you’re likely to travel, you might get good value from using Citi’s travel-booking site or transferring points to its multiple airline partners.

In terms of travel partners, the Citi Double Cash® Card allows transfers of ThankYou points to JetBlue, Wyndham and Choice Hotels. But if you had a Citi Premier® Card or Citi Prestige® Card, you could combine your ThankYou accounts and redeem points earned by the Citi Double Cash® Card with one of those higher-end cards, which have many more transfer partners. (Keep in mind, though, that JetBlue is Citi's only domestic airline partner.)

Also notable to travelers: Citi axed a number of travel benefits and protections from its credit cards as of this year. And the Citi Double Cash® Card charges a foreign transaction fee of 3%.

Regardless of this new transfer option, the Citi Double Cash® Card is a perennial NerdWallet top pick among cash-back credit cards for its high rate and its simplicity. Of course, choosing to strategically transfer rewards to ThankYou points adds a layer of complexity.

» MORE: Citi Double Cash® Card: NerdWallet’s full review